Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has alleged that Russia is abducting Ukrainian children and training them to fight against their own country, a claim
he made during an exclusive interview with CBS News. The remarks were reported by CBS News in coverage of the interview conducted by Margaret Brennan. Zelenskyy told CBS News that Ukraine possesses evidence supporting the allegations, although he did not provide specific details. CBS News reported that this marks the first time the Ukrainian president has publicly made such an accusation, which goes beyond previously documented concerns about Russia transferring Ukrainian children to re-education camps or “Russification” programs. “It is an allegation that may constitute a war crime,” CBS News noted, referencing findings by the International Criminal Court (ICC). The ICC has previously issued a warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin in 2023 related to what it described as the unlawful deportation of Ukrainian children, a case widely cited in international reporting, including CBS News. During the interview with CBS News, Zelenskyy said, “Yes have evidence of it,” while also alleging that children were being indoctrinated. “They taught these children to hate their native country,” he said in remarks aired by CBS News, adding that he believed some Ukrainian children could eventually be forced into combat against Ukrainian forces. CBS News also reported Zelenskyy’s broader concern that such children are being treated in ways that violate international humanitarian law, which provides protections for minors as non-combatants. He stressed that children should not be part of prisoner exchanges involving captured soldiers, calling such ideas unlawful and unacceptable. “It’s important to get back our warriors, war prisoners, but we can’t exchange them [for] the children,” Zelenskyy said in comments reported by CBS News. “We can’t. First of all, it’s out of the law. We can’t exchange civilians.” CBS News further reported that Zelenskyy estimated Ukraine has documented the abduction of at least 20,000 children, while warning the true number may be higher and calling for international assistance in locating them. The interview also referenced broader geopolitical and economic implications of the war. CBS News cited a report from the U.S.-funded Humanitarian Research Lab at Yale University, which concluded that Russian state-linked energy companies Gazprom and Rosneft helped support programs involving Ukrainian children. According to CBS News reporting on the study, the report linked corporate and state structures to the alleged re-education efforts. CBS News additionally noted that the issue of sanctions remains central to the conflict. Zelenskyy told CBS News that easing sanctions on Russian oil benefits Moscow’s military capacity, and urged stronger international restrictions in response to the allegations involving children. “I hope that Congress will find the possibility again to put sanctions on Russians, because of the children,” he said in comments reported by CBS News. As CBS News reported, the allegations add to ongoing international scrutiny of Russia’s actions in Ukraine, where the ICC continues to investigate potential war crimes amid the ongoing conflict.
